Too much of everything

brilliant actors, brilliant editing

Absolutely the worst movie.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

It would only be fair to say that the title of this one gives a pretty clear clue of what it's going to be about in advance. Needless to say, The Black Godfather is about the head honcho of an African-American gangster group. It's clearly a Blaxploitation riff on the earlier mega hit, The Godfather (1972), except in this one there is no focus whatsoever on the rise of the central character up to the summit of his organisation. Basically, in this one he has arisen to the rank of godfather after approximately ten minutes in! So the focus is on things he has to deal with as the leader of a black gang, such as white hoods trying to introduce drugs into the neighbourhood, something the black criminals are strongly opposed to. In order to combat this, the godfather joins forces with a Black Panther styled militant group.I was looking forward to this one, as it sounded like a sure fire winner but in all honesty it's a pretty poor effort from a genre where even most of the ropiest entries are still somewhat entertaining. It is a little too talky for its own good and it doesn't deliver enough fun on the whole. The black godfather himself wasn't truthfully the most interesting central character as it turned out, which was disappointing. It's probably a film suited mostly to Blaxploitation fanatics and I'm sure it will deliver something for most of them. One point of interest I did find though was the presence of Duncan McLeod as the requisite corrupt cop – he, of course, played the shady lawyer Porter Hall in the delicious cult classic Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) and it certainly was at least nice to see him appear in something else.

After a burglary in Harlem goes bad and his best friend is killed a wounded "J.J." (Rod Perry) is rescued by a man named "Nate Williams" (Jimmy Witherspoon) who is also known as "the Black Godfather" due to the fact that he owns the numbers racket there. After treating his wounds Nate decides to mentor J.J. because he recognizes something special in him. Sometime later J.J. becomes quite influential in both gambling and prostitution--but not in drugs which is controlled by an Italian mobster named "Tony Burton" (Don Chastain). Having seen the devastation within the black community caused by heroin J.J. decides to team up with some black militants led by a man named "Diablo" (Damu King) to make it more difficult for Tony to do business in this part of the city. Unfortunately, Tony has no intention of abandoning such a lucrative market and war soon breaks out. At any rate, rather than reveal any more of this movie and risk spoiling it for those who haven't seen it I will just say that this was a fairly decent "blaxploitation" picture. Admittedly, some of the scenes were rather slow and it could have used a bit more action here and there but otherwise it turned out okay. Accordingly, I rate it as about average.

"The Black Godfather" begins with a young guy, J.J. (Rod Perry), nearly getting himself killed but being ultimately rescued and taken under the wing of a guy who is in charge of the numbers rackets in the inner city. Despite nearly getting killed, J.J. is insistent that he has plans---plans on taking down the established white mob that has set up shop in the ghetto. However, and this is odd, it's never really certain what his plans are once he's destroyed this mob. Does he want peace for his community or does he want to be the next mob boss.This is an unusual blaxsploitation film in that I have seen similar types of movies but never one that is so muted and low-key. The normal bouncy 70s R&B music is gone and so are the loud stereotypical sorts of characters. Some, I am sure, will dislike this--they WANT the crazy over-the-top characters you see in many blaxsploitation films. Some might appreciate that the folks AREN'T so stereotypical. The problem I had is that although I appreciated these sorts of characters, the script itself just lacked energy and life--definitely making this a lesser film of the genre.By the way, look for the rather visible mic at 20:00 at the top of the screen--much like you'll see deliberately included in the recent blaxsploitation parody "Black Dynamite" (a definite must-see).

The Black Godfather is one of those underestimated movies that nobody seems to understand. I just cant understand these ratings and why nobody appreciates great actors like Rod Perry,who's performance as J.J. knocks Pacino's Michael Corleone character out of the field. This is the tale of urban mobsters at its best. Unlike Pacino,who inherits pretty much everything from his father,Nate(Jimmy Witherspoon) makes J.J. work for it.Along with great characters like Sonny(Tony Burton) and Tony,who's the perfect white villain,The Black Godfather is one of those unforgettable films you will not forget. You will be entranced by the excellent film-making. Also, look for Tangela Dixon's debut,who now works as a bus driver in Alachua County. She will be the one kicking butt on screen. Whoever does not own this film will be sorry. Not only did I buy myself a copy,but I went back and bought four more for my relatives.After this experience,the original Godfather will seem petty and worthless. Get this movie!